Macau, a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy, has seen four of its restaurants ranked among Asia’s 100 best restaurants.
The four restaurants are namely Wing Lei Palace, ranked 47; Golden Flower, 84; Jade Dragon, 89; as well as The Eight, 97. Not only are all four located in a hotel or resort, but they are also owned by their respective hotel or resort operators.
It signifies that Macau’s restaurant accolades and ranking are still a high-end operation focusing on hotel and resort offerings. This is unlike the situation at Macau’s counterpart or rival destinations, such as Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Taichung, where many independent or street-side restaurants received places on the list.
It is worth noting that Chef Tam Kwok Fung of the Wing Lei Palace led the culinary team of the now Michelin 3-star Jade Dragon at the City of Dreams for a period of time, before being invited to head the kitchen of the now Michelin 2-star Cantonese restaurant in Wynn Palace.
Despite attaining the UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy title on the basis of its legacy in preserving and faming Portuguese food – whether or not the restaurants are characterized by Asian, and particularly Macau, influences – Macau has not seen any Portuguese or Macanese restaurant making the listing.
The main list involving Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants was unveiled yesterday afternoon.
The top place of the list was claimed by Den, a contemporary Japanese restaurant in Tokyo, Japan, headed by Chef Zaiyu Hasegawa, who boasts contemporary kaiseki that incorporates elements from other cuisines.
In Taipei, Taiwan’s Mume (pronounced MU-meh) attains this year’s Sustainable Restaurant Award for his extensive use of seasonal local ingredients since its opening in 2014. The restaurant uses local ingredients in 90% of the dishes on its menus and adopts a zero-waste strategy.
Mainland China counts four restaurants in the ranking, including two new entries. Chef Christopher Kostow’s Shenzhen restaurant Ensue made an impressive debut at rank 19 while fellow newcomer Da Vittorio came in at 28. In Shanghai, Fu He Hui climbed 10 places to 12 while Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet made a welcome return to the list at 39.
There were six restaurants from Hong Kong secured places on the Asia’s 50 Best list.
Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants was launched in 2013 to celebrate gastronomy across the region and to provide diners around the globe with local insight and culinary recommendations.
